Process of manufacturing belting.



Patented July i6, |90I.

C. P. LNDRETH. PRUCESS 0F MANUFACTURING BELTING.

(Application filed Nov. l, X909.)

(No Model.)

CLARENCE P. LANDRETH, OF QUINCY, MASSACHUSETTS.

PROCESS OF MANUFACTURING BLTING.

srsorrrcn'rroiv forming part of Letters Patent No. 678,575, dated July ic, 190in Application filed November 1, i900.

To ctZZ wtont it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLARENCE P. LAN- DRETH, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Quincy, county of Norfolk, and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Processes of Manufacturing Belting, of which the following description, in connection .with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like letters on the d rawings representing like parts.

In the manufacture of canvas belts a strip of canvas of suitable width is folded 1ongitudinally one or more times to make a belt of the required width and thickness, and the folds are stitched together so as to preserve the shape of the belt, the lines of stitching generally running parallel and longitudinally of the belt and being a quarter of an inch or thereabout apart. When thus folded and stitched, the belt is passed through a bath of some suitable compound, such as oil, with which the fabric becomes thoroughly saturated, and when in this condition the belt is passed between suitable presser-rolls, which operate to condense the belt and to embed the stitches inthe fabric as far as possible.

The belt is then passed through a suitable vat containing paint or other similar material, which coats the surface thereof, and is then generally placed upon a suitable stretching-machine, where tension is applied thereto to stretch it, the belt becoming dry while it is being stretched.

I-Ieretofore the process of manufacturing canvas belts has stopped with the drying and stretching of the belt, and the belt after it has been thus treated is placed upon the market and sold.

Canvas belts as heretofore made, generally by a process similar to that outlined above, have several disadvantages which it is the object of my present invention to overcome.

In the first place it has been impossible to completely embed the stitches in the body of the fabric by passing them through the presser-rolls, as aforesaid,because the stitches in any line of stitches occur on each surface of the fabric directly opposite each other and make at thatpoint an increased thickness of fabric which must be compressed to the same thickness as the fabric between the stitches Serial No. 35,072. (No specimens.)

and must remain thus compressed if the stitches are to remain embedded in the fabric. This, however, has heretofore been impossible of accomplishment, for as soon as the belting leaves the presser-rolls the elasticity of the material expands it at the places where the stitches occur, and the stitches thus protrnde somewhat beyond the surface of the fabric, in which condition the belt dries and becomes set. When, therefore, a belt in this condition is first used, the belt contacts with the driving and driven pulleys only on the projecting stitches, with the result that the body of the belt -does not rest upon the pulleys, and hence the driving is entirely done by the adhesion between the stitches and the pulleys. This is obviously very much less than would be the adhesion between the entire face of the belt and the pulleys, so that when a belt such as above described is first usedits efficiency is belowwhat it should be. Further, the entire wear of the belt comes on the stitches alone, so that the said stitches are frequently worn through before the body of the belt is subjected to much if any wear.

Another disadvantage experienced. in the use of canvas belting is that even though the belt is usually put on a stretching-machine to take the stretch out of it, yet when the belt is put in use it stretches after a short time to such an extent as to require shortening in order to be sufficiently tight to drive the machinery.

It is the object of this invention to treat the belt before it is put into use, so that the stitches on the driving-face thereof will be substantially embedded in the body of the fabric and will be thus retained, whereby the driving-face of the belt is perfectly smooth, so that the wear will come evenly on its entire surface, and, further, to bring some of the compound with which the belt has been same condition in which an ord-inary belt would be after it has been used for some time, whereby when it is first used it does not stretch and has a driving-face of maximum eiciency.

IOO

In the drawings accompanying this application I have illustrated diagra'mmatically an apparatus or a series of devices which may be employed, if` desired, 'in carrying out the steps .of my process, although I wish it distinctly understood that the particular form of apparatus described is not essential to my process, as'other forms may be used, the form illustrated being chosen to better illustrate my process. i

Figure 1 shows diagrammatically an apparatus capable of being used in carrying out my process. Fig. 2 is a detail of said apparatus. Fig. 3 shows a transverse section `,through a beltbefore the same has been sub- Inthe drawings I have for convenience` illustrated what is called a four-ply belt; but obviously my process herein to be described is not limited to any particular kind of belt. v Y e In carryingoutmy process I take a length of canvas belting which has previously been made by the process above outlined-that is, by folding the strip of canvas longitudinally toy make a beltv of therequired width and thickness, sewing the folds together by lines of stitching runninglongitudinally of the belt, the stitches appearing on and protruding beyond both faces or sides of the belt, as seen at 3 and 5 in Figs. 3 and 4, saturating the belt in a suitable compound, passing it through presser-'rolls to compress the'fabric and make it dense, paintingit, afterward stretching and drying it, and I bring a portion of the compound with which the belt has been saturated to the surface, preferably by-heating the belt evenly. The compound appears on the surface of the belt as a viscous gummy coating, for when the belt dries during its previous treatment the compound with which it has been saturated becomes firm and practically solid, and when heat is applied to the belt or it is otherwise treated to soften the hardened compound and bring a portion thereof. to the surface of the belt such compound Ais of a viscous or gummy nature. This heating or otherwise treating of the belt not only softens the compound in the belt and brings a portion thereof to the surface, as above stated, but also softens the belt and renders it more WVhile thushot and while in this soft and pliable condition, the belt is subjected to pressure and the stitches on the face thereof are embedded in the body of the fabric, where they are held by the adhesion of the softened compound, which is of a gummy nature, as stated, until the belt is dry again, when the stitches become permanently set in theirembedded condition.

As a general rule, only one face of a belt is ever used for a driving-face, and hence it is faces of the belting at the same time.

of the belt.

bed the said stitches inthe body of the fabric,

while the stitches 5 on the opposite face of the belt have no pressure applied thereto. By thus treating the belt t-he embedding of the stitches 3 serves to push the stitches 5 still farther beyond the face of the fabric, and the fabric at theplaces where the stitches occur is not depressed to an appreciably greater extent than the fabric between the rows of stitches, as would be 'the case if pressure were applied to the stitches on both Figs. 5 and 6 show the belt after having been thus treated. In the prior treatment ofy the belt the fabric has been condensedto such an extent that the attemptto completely embed body of the fabric is liable to destroy the tex- 'the stitches on both faces of the belt in the i ture of the fabric at therows of stitches; but

by embedding the stitches 3 'on one facel of the belt and allowingV the stitches 5 on-the opposite face to protrude and makeproom for the lstitches 3 the fabric is more uniformly compressed and there is no liability ofits texture being destroyed. rlhe stitches on the driving-face when thus embedded are retained in the body of the fabric until the belt becomes cold and set by the g'ummycompound,

as described above. stitches in one face only of the fabric by applying a pressure uniformly on said face, whereby the protruding stitches are crowded face thereof are embedded in the fabric, to

Preferably I embed the loo Y,

thereby present a perfectly smooth driving.,

face without Vany projections thereon, as seen in Figs. 5 and 6, I may, if desired, iron the said driving-face by suitable means, such ironing taking place,preferably,while the belt is still hot and pliable, this ironing of the driving-face serving to still further smooth the samefthe'reby increasing the efficiency AfterY the driving-face of the belt has thus been rendered smooth and while the belt is still hot I subject the same to tension sufficient to extend the belt to practically the limit of its elasticity, and thereby completely take out all of the stretch therein, the belt being allowed to cool and dry in such stretched condition, so that when it becomes Y set it is incapable of being further stretched.

A. canvas belt, therefore, when treatedby my process presents a perfectly smooth driving-face 4 having maximum efficiency and will not when first used stretch appreciably, so that it is unnecessary to shorten the belt, as is the case when a belt made'by the ordinot necessary to embed the stitches in both nary process is first used.

n the drawings, which illustrate one way in which the process may be carried out, 6 represents a suitable roll upon which the beltting, which has been subjected to the ordinary which the belt has been previously saturated to the surface of the fabric. The belt passes from the heating-chamber in its soft and pli- -able condition and with the composition at the surface of the fabric through suitable presser-rolls, three rolls 10, 11, and 12 being shown in this instance, though the number of rolls is notessentialto the carrying out of the-process,whichrolls are journaled in a suit- Y able support 13 and are movable toward and from each other by means of the screw 11i in a well-known way, the bearings of the rolls being guided in the slot of the standard 13. As'illustrated, `the central roll 11 has a smooth surface, whilethe upper and under rolls 12 and 10 areprovided'in their peripheries with a series of grooves 1G, the saidgrooves being aA distance apart equal to the distance between the rows of stitcheson the belt and being of.`

suflicient size tofreceive the stitches, though this is not essential to the process. With this arrangement of rolls and assuming'that the under side Iof the belt 7 as it leaves the roll 6 is to be the driving-face, the said belt passes 'under the roll 10, betweenthe rolls 10 and 11,

u and around'the -roll 11,as shown, by means i1 of which manner of threadingthe belt through A01 i 4tact withfthe middle roll 11 and the outside, `of the beltwill contact with the rolls 10 and 12.

the rolls the driving-face of the beltwill con- As stated above, the grooves 1G in the rolls "l 10 and-12 are so positioned that they receive the lines of stitches on the outsideface of the belt, and by reason of the pressure .between i the said rolls the stitches on the driving-face of the belt are embedded in the fabric and because of the density of the fabric push the stitches on the outside of the fabric farther beyond the face thereof, the groovesl providing room for the said stitches.'

When the belt leaves the presser-rolls, it has the appearance illustrated in Figs. 5 andthat is, thedriving-face is .perfectly smooth, with the stitches embedded in the fabric and comingl iiushrwith the face thereof, while the stitches on the opposite face of the fabric project considerably beyond the surface.

1f desired, I may rotate the smooth roll 11 fasterthan the rolls 10 and 12, whereby the driving-surface ofthe belt, besides having the stitches therein completely embedded in the.

fabric, is also ironed by the friction of the roll 11, thus rubbing the compound which is on the surface of the fabric to make a smooth and more efiicient driving-surface.

Either or all of the rolls10, 11, and 12 may be heated by any suitable means, thereby imparting additional heat to the belt and also .serving to assist in the ironing step of the process.

As the belt leaves the presser-rolls it is subjected to longitudinal tension sufficient to take the entire stretch out of it, such tension being given to the belt by means of the tension-rolls 18 19, mounted in a suitable support 20, between which rolls the belt passes,

I the said rolls revolving at a greater surface speed than the rolls 10 and 12, thus stretch- Iing the belt between the point where it leaves the compression-rolls and where it enters the `and dry it is ready for use, it having a perfectlysmooth driving-face e, as seen in Figs.

5 and 6, and being practically incapable 0f `further stretching. i

`The process herein described is not limited in all particulars to the steps described above,

but may be varied without departing from the spirit of my invention, which consists in taking a canvas belt made according to the ordinary methods, heating the same, thereby softening and bringing the composition with which it has' been saturated to the surface, permanently embeddingthe stitches in the body of the fabric, and preferablyironing the driving-face and subsequently stretching the belt while still hot.

Having described my invention, whatV I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s-

1. The improved process of Imanufacturing 'canvas belting which consists in saturating the belt with some suitable compound, such as oil, heating the same, and rubbing or ironing the surface thereof while it is still hot.

2. The improved process of manufacturing canvas beltin g which consists in foldingI strips of canvas longitudinally to form a belt of the required width and thickness, saturating the same with a compound such as oil, stretching the belt lengthwise and drying it, and subsequently bringing some of the composition in the body of the belt to the surface, and smoothing the surface of the belt by ironing it.

3. That improvement in the manufacture of canvas belting made from a strip of canvas folded longitudinally and stitched, which belt has beensaturated with a suitable compound and'dried, which process consists in IOO IIO

subsequently heating the belt to thereby soften and expand the composition with .which the belt is saturated and bring a portion thereof to the surface, and smoothing the driving-surface thereof by rubbing or ironing.

4. The improved process of manufacturing canvas belting which consists in saturating the belt in a compound, drying the same and subsequently heating the belt to soften the compound and render the same less adhesive, a portion thereof coming to the surface of the belt, and while the belt is still hot rubbing and smoothing the surface thereof and stretching the same.

5. That improvement in the manufacture of canvas belting made from strips of canvas folded longitudinallyand stitched, and which has been saturated with a suitable compound, compressed, and stretched lengthwise, which improvement consists in subsequently heating the belt, and pressing the same and embedding the `stitches on the face thereof in the body of the fabric while the belt is still hot.

6'. That improvement in the manufacture of canvas beltingmade from strips of canvas folded longitudinally and stitched,which belt has been saturated with a suitable compound, compressed, and stretched lengthwise,which improvement consists in subsequently heating the belt, pressing the sameand embedding the stitches on the facevthereof in the body of the fabric, and stretching the belt while still hot.

7. The process of treating canvas belt, which is made from strips of canvas folded longitudinally and stitched and which has been previously saturated in a suitable compound, which process consists in heating the belt thus treated to thereby bring the compound to the surfacel of the fabric, embedding the stitches on the driving-face of the belt in the body of the fabric, and forcing the stitches on the opposite side thereof beyond the surface, to thus make room for the embedded stitches and ironing the drivingface, while the belty is still hot, to sc'cure a smooth driving-surface.

8. The process of treating canvas belt, which is made from strips of canvas folded longitudinally and stitched and which has been previously saturated in a suitable compound, which process consists in heatingthe belt thus treated to thereby bring the compound to the surface of the fabric, embedding the stitches on the driving-face of the belt in the body of the fabric, and forcing the stitches on the opposite side thereof beyond the surface, to thus make room forthe embedded stitches, and ironing the drivingface, to secure a smooth driving-surface, and then stretching the belt while the belt is still hot.

9. The process of treating canvas belt I been saturated in a suitable compound which consists in pressing the driving-face of the belt and embedding the stitches thereon in the body of the fabric, and forcing the stitches on the opposite face of the belt beyond the surface thereof to thus make room for the` embedded stitches, whereby a smooth driving-face is produced.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

CLARENCE P. LANDRETH.

Witnesses:

GEO. W. GREGORY,- lLOUIS C. SMITH. 

